


Hold my hand, because no one else can

by gp120



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-03
Updated: 2019-08-10
Packaged: 2019-08-17 06:55:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16511447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gp120/pseuds/gp120
Summary: Stiles is hurt and Derek doesn't save him really, but he helps. And that was supposed to be it. It was supposed to end there.





	1. Chapter 1

It was chilly outside, but of course Cora had to take care of business right before he was supposed to go to bed. The dog was adamant about it and Derek didn’t feel like cleaning up pee from the entrance hall carpet while Cora looked on with those judgmental eyes. As if not having opposable thumbs released her of all responsibility. At least the streetlights were on. The city of Beacon Hills still had some money in the coffers.  
Derek was pulled from his musings by Cora’s growl. The pulling of the leash was unusual. She was the best-behaved dog he had ever known. “Come on Cora. It’s just a rat or something”  
But she seemed to get more agitated. He was about to pull her back towards the apartment building when the dog pulled free, the leash trailing behind, sprinting between a closed porn store and a laundromat. It better not be a skunk, Derek thought as he jogged after her.

God, a skunk would have been great. Anything but this. He saw Cora attached to a leg of a man, who was inching away towards the back alley. His friends were trying to kick Cora off. And Derek was left to face a half-naked boy behind a dumpster. It would have been less traumatizing if it was a case of upper half of the body being the naked part. Yelling Cora’s name to at least get her to come back was pointless. And dangerous. There were three guys, and Derek wasn’t an idiot. Dialing 911 the very first time in his life was horrifying. 

‘911, what is your emergency?’  
“There’s a… uh kid here. Un-conscious, I think.”  
‘Sir, what’s your name?’  
“Derek… Hale”  
‘Okay Derek, can you tell me exactly what happened?’  
“I found him. My dog. She took off after three guys. The…. Uh… the kid. Something bad happened to him.”  
‘What happened, Derek?’  
Oh God, he can't say it aloud.  
“He doesn’t have pants on.”  
‘Okay, can you tell me where you are?’  
“Behind laundromat… on 15th.”  
‘Is he breathing? Can you check for me?’

Derek crouched to see the kid closer. How do you check for breathing? His hand was shaking too badly to feel any airflow from the nose, but he could see shivering. And the too fast rise and fall of the shoulders.  
“Yeah he’s breathing. I can see it.”  
‘Try to wake him up, okay? Can you try and talk to him?’  
“Hey… kid. Hey. --- No, he’s just shivering there. I… I’m gonna cover his… it’s cold.”  
‘That’s good, Derek. I have an ambulance and an officer five minutes out. Can you tell me if his lips are blue?’  
“Uh… no. They look normal.”  
‘Can you check for injuries? Can you see any blood?’

Squinting under the minimal lighting, Derek scanned the boy’s head and arms. Scrapes and bloody hands.  
“Yeah, his hands are bleeding.”  
‘Anywhere else? You said he didn't have pant on him’  
Oh God. He did not want to do this. The feet looked bruised. Lifting his jacket from the bottom half of the boy seemed perverse. Jesus… that’s blood.   
“I’m gonna….”  
Turning away from the unconscious kid was all he could do before puking.  
“There’s blood…. Down there. I puked, I’m sorry. Shit…”  
‘That’s okay. You are doing great, Derek’  
“What… what do I do?”  
‘Wait exactly where you are. Help is just around the block. They will find you’  
“I… I’m behind the laundromat…. On 15th.”  
‘Yes, an officer should be there any minute. Just stay on the line, Derek’  
“Okay…. He’s… he’s still breathing. He has brown hair.”  
‘Can you tell me anything else, Derek? Are there any identifiable features?’  
“Uh… moles all over his face. Batman shirt, red and white flannel shirt… “

“Sir! Can you raise your hands and identify yourself?”  
A cop. Finally…  
‘Derek, hang up and do what the officer says’  
“Okay…. Bye”  
He knew his hands were shaking, but he was so relieved. There was someone else to take care of the situation. “I’m Derek. I …. I puked there. The kid needs help. He’s not okay… and I might puke again”  
“I am deputy Parrish. Can you stand up and slowly back away from the body?”  
“It’s not a body. He’s breathing, I checked” Derek says as he scrambles up and stumbles to the side. The officer comes close and pats him down for some fucking reason before finally looking at the kid and checking his pulse.  
“Jesus Christ…”   
Based on the deputy’s reaction, Derek feels better. He was not way off in being horrified. The humming in his head is getting louder. He hears snippets of the deputy talking into something. “...call in the sheriff. Tell him it’s his kid…” 

“Hey. Sir? Did you see anything?” The deputy is looking at the boy, but obviously talking to Derek.   
“There are… were. Three guys. My dog went after them. I think she bit one. They… they ran that way. Um.. can someone find my dog? Her name is Cora… she’s a German Shepperd. I think I need to puke.”   
“Units to south 15th. Three suspects on foot. One possibly bitten by a dog”  
Derek is starting to shiver. Suddenly there are EMTs working on the boy. He gets lifted on a stretcher and soon someone is shining a bright light in Derek’s eyes.   
“Sir? Can you hear me?”  
“Yeah”  
“What’s your name?”  
“Derek Hale”  
“Okay, you look a bit pale. How are you feeling?”  
“I think I might puke. I puked once there. Is… is that going to ruin the – the crime scene? I’m sorry.”  
“No, that’s fine. Come to the ambulance so we can check you over, okay?”  
“Okay. My dog went after them.”

There is a blanket on him and he realizes he was cold. Which makes him shiver more. Why are they taking his blood pressure? He tries to vomit discreetly to the left and not get any on the blanket.  
“I’m sorry… Hey is the kid okay?” Like covering up for the puking thing by talking is any help…  
“He was taken in a few minutes ago. We are going to take you to the hospital too. Just because of the vomiting. You might be in shock, do you understand?” The EMT did not look worried though. It made Derek feel less nervous and did nothing for his nausea.  
“Yeah… I feel weird.”  
“They found your dog, okay? She was limping few blocks down. The deputies are taking her to a vet now” Well at least she was walking…  
“Is she okay?”  
“It didn’t look bad. They will let you know”

Then he was getting a ride at the back of an ambulance. It was too bright in there. But nice and warm.   
The hospital was unpleasant. It smelled of disinfectants and there was a bright light in his eyes again. They took his blood pressure again. And put a drip of fluids on and injected something to make him less nauseous.   
“Can we call someone?” a motherly looking nurse enquired.  
“My sister… her number’s in my phone. It’s in my back pocket” Wait, where were his pants?  
The nurse was digging in a pair of jeans for his phone. He did not remember taking the jeans off. That was worrisome.  
“What name is she under?”  
“Laura” The nurse dialed and obviously Laura picked up.  
“…would you like to talk to him? Okay…. Here he is”

‘Derek! Are you okay?’ Laura sounded panicked.  
“Yeah… I think so. Can you come and get me? The police took Cora to a vet, I think…?”  
‘I’ll be there in half an hour, okay?’  
“Yeah… I’m okay”  
He spaced out for a minute and snapped back to the room when the deputy’s face floated above his.  
“Mr. Hale? I’m deputy Parrish, from earlier. Do you remember?”  
“Yeah” At least he remembered there had been a cop.   
“How are you doing?”  
“They say I am in shock? I don’t know. I feel okay” Well, apart from the nausea.  
“Yeah you had a scary night” The deputy had a grim smile on. Like the one you put on to communicate something instead of the one you had when actually happy.  
“Not supposed to be scared…” And why did he say that to a cop? Should save it for his shrink.  
“Hey, none of that. You did great.”  
“Is the boy okay?”  
“He will be. Thanks to you. Oh, and we took your dog to the on-call vet. She is a hero. Bit one of the suspects hard enough to slow them down. A patrol found the guy limping on the side of the road.”  
“Is she okay?”  
“Yeah. They must have kicked her hard. She will be in a cast for a bit. Lost a few teeth too”  
“Oh god. She’s going to hate that so much” embarrassingly he started crying at that. Poor Cora.   
“Hey, you helped finding and keeping the sheriff’s kid safe. The vet bills are on us. We just need a statement, okay? I need your address and phone number. And you will need to stay in town for a bit. Did you have any plans to leave?”  
“No. I think they have my wallet there. With my address and all that. ID. Whatever you need.”

The deputy got his driver’s license from the nurse just as Laura came in. She had sweatpants on. They were horribly big on her. Were they his? Didn’t he lose that gray pair last week?   
“Jesus, Derek. What happened?”  
“I’m apparently in shock. I puked” Parrish moved to get Laura’s attention.  
“Ma’am, deputy Parrish. Your brother is a witness in a case now. He happened on a crime scene.”  
“Oh god. Did you get hurt?” Her eyes were very large. She looked like their mother.  
“No. They were already running away. But the kid…. Laura, it was...” He couldn’t finish that thought, let alone say it.  
“Jesus” She got it. Or made a wrong guess, maybe. Either way it was an appropriate response.  
“Ma’am, I need to take his statement now. Could you wait outside for a bit? It shouldn’t be long.” Parrish was very professional when he gently pushed Laura outside.

“I was taking Cora out for a walk before bed.”   
“What time was it?”  
“I think it was some time after ten. She started growling and pulled the leash off me before the main street crossing. I followed her and saw the… the men getting away…”  
“Can you describe them?”  
“There were three. Looked young, under 30. One of them was blonde with curly hair. The one with his pants down… um… he had a hoodie on.” Thinking about it made him nauseous.  
“Where was this?”  
“The laundromat. Behind the laundromat. I saw Cora bite one of them. I swear she has never bitten anyone. And I saw the kid on the ground.”  
“Can you describe him?”  
“Batman shirt. Moles. He didn’t have pants. There was blood, she made me check” Was it enough blood to be serious? What was a non-serious amount of blood from rape?  
“Who made you check?”  
“I called 911. The lady told me to check for blood. I put my coat on him because it was cold. I puked”  
“That’s all I need, Mr. Hale”   
“Okay. Can I go home now?”  
“As long as they release you. I will let your sister in. And here is the card of the vet your dog is at.”  
Getting out of the hospital seemed harder than it should. The nausea was better but not completely gone and Laura was a tad too short to offer great support on the way to the car. Laying in his bed he felt just like he’d had the flu. It was 3am and he was exhausted.

The next day, Laura came to the vet’s office with him. The deputy was not kidding about the department paying for the vet bill. Everything was taken care of and Cora seemed happy to see him. Even with the cast looking ridiculously pink on her left front leg.   
“I missed you, girl…”   
“Mr. Hale. I am the attending veterinarian. Your dog has been getting spoiled by the deputies all morning.”  
“I heard. She will be insufferable for a while.”  
“That is to be expected. We were able to collect evidence off of her”  
“What?”  
“She did get a good hold of the assailant. There was some biological remains between her teeth”  
“Biological remains?”  
“Nothing to worry about. She won’t get sick of it. If anything, some behavioral problems might arise. Fear of certain things. I have to warn you. Just don’t take your pants off in front of her.”  
“Excuse me?”  
“Technically I am not supposed to disclose anything. But this is the matter of your safety. And I don’t need to get sued over this. It did appear that there was some pubic hair between her teeth… and possibly some tissue….”  
“Jesus Christ! She bit his dick off?!”  
“Well… at least uhm… nipped it?”  
This was beyond disturbing. Definitely not getting any sausages for Cora any time soon.  
“So that’s going to help with the case?”  
“Most definitely. DNA evidence and such.”  
Thank god it was at least useful. Should he keep Cora out of his bedroom? He liked to sleep naked. 

In the end, it was less hassle to just suck it up and wear boxers for bed.


	2. Chapter 2

Getting called in to ID the monsters from a line-up was unpleasant. He couldn’t even use work as an excuse to get out of it, as Derek was his own boss. The station was a soulless government building. The receptionist was too friendly.   
“Mr. Hale! Glad to see you could make it.” The nametag said Parrish.  
“Deputy…”  
“Parrish. I took your statement at the hospital.” Right. The officer next to his bed, who saw him cry over his completely fine dog. The handshake was jovial.  
“I’ll take you in the observation room in a minute”. Parrish went to get a water for him. And just by chance Derek saw the boy in the hallway. It was definitely him. Even if Derek hadn’t had the best of view what with the blood and trash and trauma. The brown hair and pale skin with moles visible only head-on under the red hoodie. The boy was gathered to the side of the grim looking sheriff.  
“Okay, your turn. They can’t see you, so take your time. It’s okay if you don’t see them there.”  
Derek no longer wondered if he got it right when the first seven guys shuffled out of the line-up. His pick walked all kinds of funny. He wasn’t sure of the next one. One was okay. That’s what Parrish said, when Derek got ready to talk with the DA. She was tall and imposing. He would likely be called to testify, if the monsters didn’t settle out of court. 

Turns out, Derek could skip the court. It was settled without him. Jail time all around hopefully. He didn’t think about the incident for the next few months. Life went on. His shop was doing fine with the people re-furnishing their homes in the spring. He even got some new clients for custom pieces. He was sanding down the oak frame of a loveseat, when his phone went off.   
“Hello?”   
“Mr. Hale? This is… the sheriff. Stilinski. Noah. I wanted to let you know the case is through now. You are free to leave town, or you know…”  
“Oh… thanks for letting me know. Did it… did it go well?”  
“Yeah… well as well as could be expected. Six years. And probably only because I’m the sheriff and there was DNA evidence.” Right. His dog saved the day.  
“Glad Cora was helpful”  
“I heard you were the one who called 911. I cannot thank you enough. Which is why… if you’re up for it. You can say no. We would like to… I would love to have you over for a dinner. Or just drop by. It is about time we give your property back.”  
“What?”  
“Dinner? Steaks?”  
“I mean, what property?” He was sure he left nothing at the station.  
“Jacket. You covered him with it. It was taken to the hospital in the ambulance. And Stiles… he has been… It has been so hard for him. And I just found out last week that he has been wearing it around at school…”   
Right. His leather jacket. It was getting too warm to wear it, so its absence was forgotten.   
“I didn’t even notice… I don’t mind. He can keep it”   
He must have known on some level that the boy was the sheriff’s kid. Probably communicated to him at the police station or at the scene. Likely at the scene.   
“No, it’s yours. At least come and have a steak. The least I can do. Hell, if I did anything less I wouldn’t even call.”  
“Okay… When should I…?” 

It was Saturday. Great weather. Derek felt like an intruder pulling in front of the yellow house. Getting this over with was a priority. It wouldn’t do any good to be the one who denied the sheriff something.   
“Mr. Hale! Come on in. The grill is about ready for the steaks. You want a beer?”  
“Sure. I’m driving though…”  
“One will be out of your system by the time you leave. If you’re worried, I can breathalyze you, I have the stuff in my car” And wouldn’t that be awkward if he just failed the test.   
The beer gave him something to fiddle with when the sheriff rambled on about the steaks and led them to the back patio.   
“You know I can never thank you enough for what you did.” The sheriff looked sheepish for some reason. Or maybe Derek was misreading social cues again.  
“It wasn’t… Anyone would have done it”  
“Well it was you this time. And your dog”  
“Yeah, she’s the real hero” Cora was still smug. She knew what she had done. She got a gift basket from the deputies. With penis shaped dog biscuits.  
The sheriff chuckled and flipped the steaks.

“I was surprised they didn’t call me in as a witness for the trial”  
“Well – “  
“The lawyer thought you couldn’t be impartial. You know. Because of the statutory thing”  
And that would be the kid. With a huge hoodie and huge eyes.  
“Stiles!”  
“…I guess that would do it…”  
“Stiles, you know the files are private”  
“Dad, there were only two passwords to get to them. Basically public.”  
“I am so sorry…”  
“No it’s fine. It was a long time ago. I didn’t think that would matter, but I guess…”  
And maybe the defense attorney would have dug it out. With his luck, they would have brought it up. Unreliable witness with PTSD. And why did he drink half a beer already. No way the sheriff would let him leave.   
“Stiles…”  
“Dad… I know. I’m sorry Mr. Hale. It’s none of my business”  
“It’s fine. I hadn’t thought about it.”  
“Please know that we are extremely grateful for what you did. Even just picking them up from the lineup was enough.” The sheriff hurried to cover for his kid as he should.  
“Though your dog biting a leg and a dick helped plenty.”  
“Stiles! Language!”

At least the boy was well enough to provide sarcastic commentary.   
“Cora is awesome like that. Though, it will still be a while before I give her another sausage”  
Stiles chuckled. And the sheriff seemed surprised at that.   
They had steaks and light conversation. About the sheriff’s work and the county. He found out that Stiles was acing his first high school SAT preps. Seemed like a smart kid. Well adjusted. Maybe less so now than before. 

“What do you do for work?”   
A great ramp to normal conversation from the sheriff.  
“I’m a carpenter. Furniture.”  
“Oh. Yeah, that makes sense” came from the boy by the grill.  
Both Derek and the sheriff looked at the kid inquisitively.  
“Your coat… It smells woodsy”   
“Yeah. Sawdust gets into the lining.” And that coat had been on the workshop floor for a few weeks after he just forgot it there.  
“So what sort of furniture?” Derek could bet the sheriff was just making small talk.  
“Custom chairs and things like that. Some corporate stuff.”  
“People don’t just go to IKEA?” Stiles looked seriously baffled. His age was showing.  
“Heh… not after they turn forty”

“There is value to a well-made product, son. What would you say you were most proud of?”  
“I guess… three years ago when I was starting out I was commissioned to make a rocking horse.”  
“Seriously? Dude, you are the proudest of a toy?” The outrage made Derek smile.   
“It was a very special rocking horse. It could seat three people. The special needs school had very specific needs. Stability and safety, not to mention it had to be touchable. They only got me because I was the cheapest.”  
“How do you build a stable rocking horse?” And that was the smarts showing. Stiles would be okay.  
“You contact your engineering student buddy you work with at the bar and owe him a big favor. And end up arranging a dance mob proposal for his girlfriend.”  
“Well that must have been a great horse”   
The desert was obviously his cue to get going. The sheriff didn’t even breathalyze him.


	3. Chapter 3

He didn’t actively think about the incident and Stiles for five years and three months. He had the endless Saturday night shift at Creature Comforts. The gaggle of college kids at the end of the bar was louder than the bass heavy soundtrack of Saturday night DJ douche bag.   
“Dude, it’s your birthday! Stiles, did you think we would make you come and see us get laid?”  
Stiles seemed nervous but smiled at his friend. The kid had grown in to the gangly limbs. Damn, he was cute when he smiled.  
The group continued downing drinks and seemed eager to help Stiles find some company. With that face it shouldn’t be a problem.  
“Hey, he looks like fun! You like tall and dark?” The dark-haired guy was actually pointing at someone.  
“I don’t know” And was that a no from Stiles or he honestly hadn’t thought about it. Derek could only hope for the latter. Sub-consciously. Because he was not thinking about Stiles that way.  
“Stiles, if you don’t talk to anyone or dance at all, how will you ever get laid?”  
“Fine! But just five minutes, one song”  
It got busy as it always did and the group with Stiles and his pushy friend were lost in the throng of sweaty bodies. Every now and then Derek could see the group and a flash of Stiles. He was glad Boyd was closing. No need to wait until four to head home.

Derek heard the high-pitched whine of the alarm for the back door just when he was leaving. It happened sometimes. People going out for a smoke. Or worse, people going out in the back to grope and fuck each other silly.   
“I’ll take care of it. And I am leaving now since I have to deal with this shit. The next horn dogs are yours”  
“Thanks dude! See ya around.”  
Boyd owed him big time if it was a threesome again. Why was it always threesome? Did anyone do just normal stuff these days?   
“Okay then! Put your pants on and I will not call the cops”  
The alley looked empty apart from the guy sitting on the ground.   
“Hey, do you need a cab?.... or do I need to call the cops?”  
“….panic…. attack…”  
And of course it’s Stiles. “Oh! Shit.”  
Stiles just kept wheezing. “Okay. You are okay. Just- “. Derek ducked back into the building.  
There were always some bags in the storage room. Derek grabbed the first one. It smelled of oranges. Stiles better not be allergic to oranges.   
“Here. Breathe in there.”  
He put the bag on Stiles’ face and held onto the back of his head, keeping his eyes on his face. It took a long while before the rattling of the bag got slower.  
“Okay?”  
“…yeah…”  
Thank god. Derek did not feel like carting the kid to a hospital. A relatively mild attack wouldn’t require medical intervention. No loss of consciousness. Eyes seemed normal.   
“Stiles, right?”  
“Yeah” His eyes were huge and brown pools of chocolate.  
“Where are your friends?”  
“No idea. Probably still inside”  
“Might want to give them a call or find them. They are bound to worry.”  
“…don’t want to go back in…”  
“Okay. Just text them then? Do you need a ride?”  
“I’m fine.”   
Yeah offering rides at the back of the bar was suspicious as hell.  
Stiles’ hands were too shaky to do anything on his phone fast. Finally, he gave up on the keyboard and called someone.  
“Yeah, Scotty. I don’t feel well…. No, I really- NO I REALLY FEEL SHITTY. I’m going h- HOME! Dude I am going home!... YEAH, I’M OKAY! BYE!”  
“Okay? You want a ride home? I know where you live- No!” That sounds bad. “I know where your dad lives. I can take you there. It’s on my way home. Stiles, you’ve met me. I…it’s Derek”  
“Oh?”  
“Yeah. From when…” Great. Bring up the worst day of the kid’s life. “You are wearing my jacket”  
“Shit” Stiles pales up a little bit.  
“So you want a ride?”

They settled in his car and Derek turned up the heating. With the radio on, it was almost a normal ride home. Stiles was quiet and seemed zoned out. The hair looked fluffy and messy. He was still unbearably adorable.  
They stopped in front of the dark house. Derek wondered if the patio was still as nice, or if the sheriff still barbequed stakes. Stiles didn’t make a move to get out of the car.   
“Are you okay?”  
“It’s dark” At least Stiles was talking. Catatonic people were probably difficult to handle.  
“Yeah… It’s past midnight.”  
“I know.”  
With less than chivalrous agenda, Derek decided to go in for all or nothing.  
“I can… do you want me to come in with you?”  
“Dad should be home in a few hours…” Not that he would have done anything scandalous, but okay. Good to know. And good for Stiles to make it known that his dad would be coming.  
“I can come in with you. I’ll go when you’re comfortable. Or when the sheriff gets home.”  
I know what your dad does. See how I am safe and not at all creepy.   
“Okay” Stiles still stayed seated.

Derek decided it was up to him to get things going. Or they would just sit on the driveway until his dad got home. Opening the door for Stiles and getting the house keys from his shaky hands at the porch reminded him of the times he had to sneak Laura back home past their parents.   
The living room looked like Derek remembered it from years ago. Maybe the pillows were different or there was more stuff on the coffee table. 

He navigated to the kitchen and managed to get a glass of water set up on the coffee table in front of Stiles. They sat on the couch quietly. Stiles stared at the water.  
“You should drink some. Helps with tomorrow’s hangover.”  
“I know. Not my first time.”   
Stiles’ eyes were half closed in that way you got when drunk and loose. Not falling asleep but getting there slowly.  
“Yeah, I figured. No-one downs half of my long islands without solid experience”

Derek settled deeper into the cushions and checked the bay window facing the driveway.   
“They groped my ass and didn’t let go”  
Derek turned back to Stiles. What the fuck was he supposed to say to that?  
“I’m sorry”   
“Not your fault. I didn’t know I would react like that”  
“First time in a gay bar?”   
God, it would be adorable. First time in a gay bar and it happened to be his.  
“No… that night… you know.”   
Jesus. Five years ago. Shit… was it the same bar? And how did a 16-year-old get into a bar?  
Stiles turned the TV on. Derek was still staring. How was he able to even step in there? And seem to have a good time.

The nature documentary was sufficiently calming. No chance of any flashbacks to a bar or an assault.   
“What looser bails early from his own birthday? Happy 21st for me”  
“Happy birthday, Stiles”  
“Thanks” He sounded sad and drunk.   
“Mine wasn’t anything special either”  
“Yeah?” The hopeful question was a bit concerning. Did he hope Derek was similarly unfortunate?  
“I stayed home with my sister and had a bottle of wine to throw up later while she laughed”  
“She sounds charming”  
“I hadn’t had any alcohol before that apart from a beer or two in high school. Laura still has pictures. If I ever scorn her enough, she will show them to my mother”

“My mom’s dead” Great way to put a foot in my mouth…  
“I’m sorry. I knew that”  
“It’s okay.”  
The seals were basking on the beach on the screen. The male was making his way to a group of females. The narrator was probably smiling. You could hear that sort of thing. Stiles shifted against the cushions and seemed to open his eyes wider.

 

“Do you think I could ever… you know… have a regular romantic relationship”  
“Regular?”  
“With dates and sex”   
Oh lord, was he supposed to give some sort of motivational speech about boning now?  
“Why wouldn’t you?”  
“I get freaked out by a bit of groping. I haven’t even…”  
Please don’t continue that sentence. Dear god, do not lead me to temptation… and how ever the hell that was supposed to continue. Why did Stiles have to be cute and vulnerable. Made Derek want all kinds of things. Some more morally acceptable than others.  
“You’re young. Groping’s not really a date thing and neither is sex. If you don’t want to”. It hadn’t been for him. But it was such a long time ago. Which was before Grindr existed. My god, he was ancient.

“’With the right person’- crap has been iterated to me by dad for years.”  
“I know. It took a while to figure out if I was really into guys or if I was just scared of women after… you know” And why did he insist on bringing that trauma up again. Maybe it was something Stiles brought to the surface on him.

“Oh… right. I forgot about that. If it’s any consolation, I thought I might be asexual or something for a while. And then this guy and it was obvious I was into… that. So… yeah. But when do I get over that stupid feeling in the back of my head?”  
Ah, the danger, DANGER alarm going off at the worst times. The perfume, a certain make of a car, or the word “honey” followed by a shiver, goose flesh and nausea.  
“It fades… slowly. I… I don’t know. I guess time helps”  
Also connecting with people helped. Derek might have been much better, faster, if he would have had more friends. Or closer friends.   
“I miss fake wrestling on the floor with Scott and even just leaning on someone’s shoulder in the movie theater to comment on the plot or something”  
Jesus… touch starved was the two-word beast thrown at him by his sister every so often. When he got twitchy and irritable. She made him get a massage once. And trapped him on her couch by pretending to fall asleep on him.   
“Your dad-“  
“Are you telling me to cuddle with my dad? That’s just wrong”  
“No. I don’t know. Laura calls it touch starved.”  
“Sounds about right. Maybe I should just get a hooker or something”  
“Doesn’t work” Shit. Shit, this is embarrassing.  
“Good to know” Stiles has the nerve to look amused and even crack a tiny smirk.   
Worth it.

“So how did you get over… all that?”  
Lie. Lie your pants off. Make it sound like you are all over it. Super balanced and socially well adapted was what Derek wanted to broadcast.  
“Figured out I am really into guys. And went on a blind date with the most boring dude in existence.”  
This time Stiles laughs, and Derek feels like he won something.  
“Did you have a good time?”  
“Cardboard cutout would have been more entertaining. But I didn’t feel pressured into anything and he was awkward about his whole existence too. Hand holding was as wild as it got”  
“I could kill for some good hand holding” And that was beyond sad. Derek could give Stiles a late-ish birthday present. With minimal inappropriate intention.

“Shouldn’t have to get your dad arresting you tonight. I have hands. You want the left or the right?” Well that sounded like Derek was going to severe a limb for Stiles to cuddle with.  
“You’re serious?”  
“I know how it is. You know me. I’m no one and you know me”

This is stupid. They are both technically adults. Stiles puts his unreasonably sweaty palm on Derek’s hand on the couch. Derek tries not to flinch or jump or react and manages at least that.   
Turning the hand to actually grab a hold of Stiles’ fingers makes him draw in a breath.  
“You okay with this?”  
“…yeah…”  
“Look at me. You know me. I am not going to do anything else but hold your hand”  
“…okay”  
The erratic breathing calms down.   
“You have warm hands. Or a warm left hand. Can’t be sure of the right one.”  
“You want to switch?”  
“No. This is good.”  
Stiles squeezes his hand a bit. And Derek does it back. Like that game of shock Derek used to play at elementary school.   
They finished the documentary in silence and Derek started to wonder how to get gracefully out of this whole hand holding thing. It was getting sweaty and Stiles had a fairly strong grip.

And the front door opened before Derek had the chance to untangle his mitts off the sheriff’s son. Great.  
“Stiles… you’re home early”  
“Yeah… didn’t feel like staying out late”  
The look on the sheriff’s face broadcasted even to Derek how much he did not believe that shit.  
“…fine. Had a panic attack…”  
“You okay? What happened?”  
Jesus, was Stiles going to tell about groping in a bar?  
“Just a trigger… not a new one. Don’t ask, please…”  
“Okay. As long as you’re okay. And good evening Mr. Hale”  
“Evening… I should be going…”  
“Don’t mind me. I’ll head to bed. Good night, Stiles. Happy birthday.”  
“Thanks dad.”

At least Derek had his hand to himself.   
“So, I should probably head out. The dog needs to go out”  
“Yeah, okay. Thanks for staying. And the handholding.”  
“No problem. You are doing great by the way”  
“Thanks…”  
“I was way worse off five years on.”  
“It’s just the human contact that I suck at. Everything else is peachy”  
“Well, if you want to practice, you know where to find me”  
Why did he say that? That sounded so stupid.


	4. Chapter 4

Next time Stiles’ doe eyes assaulted Derek’s retinas was the next week at the end of his workday at the woodshop. The inappropriate images he had conjured up when he had “private Derek time” involved Stiles every time. His wide hands to be precise. And now he had to pretend he hadn’t touched his dick during lunch break hoping it was Stiles’ fingers. 

“Hey… Derek”  
He had never been this happy about the counter Laura had insisted he put in the main sales room.   
“Hi. Looking for some real furniture?”  
“Nah… Maybe in twenty years though”  
“Fair. What’s up?” Other than my dick.  
“Just… I think I owe you a coffee or something. Last weekend was kind of rough and you took me home and kept me company.”  
“Okay”   
What else was he supposed to say? This would probably provide even more material for “private Derek time”. And coffee was great.   
“Let me close up here.”  
“Yeah I figured this was the best time to catch you… according to your website you do close at three on Saturdays…”  
“And you have done your research. Should I get worried about stalking? Plans to rob me?”  
“Nah… I’m mostly harmless. It’s not like I could overpower you or drag any of this stuff farther than a block or two”  
“Good to know where I should be looking for the sawhorse then. Ready?”

The coffee place was Derek’s usual morning stop every day. Karen started on his order before they even got to the counter and Stiles added his request to it with ease. And he paid. A gentleman. Hah.   
They sat in the corner with the least offensive paintings on the wall. Who would buy that atrocity for 125 dollars?   
“So, all my friends think we fucked last week”  
Oh…. Right…  
“And you want me to assure them we didn’t?”  
“No. I don’t think they would ever confront you about it.”  
“They know I went home with you? As in me specifically?”  
“Not exactly. They just know that we kind of know each other from way back. Which is not a lie. And they came up with the raunchy porn imagery by themselves. It is amazing how much your straight friends know about the ins and outs of gay sex.”  
At least Derek had an imaginary sex-life now. In someone else’s head. Impressive feat.   
“I can live with that. Was I at least described as a magnificent lover with a massive dick?”  
“Oh yeah. And even your sperm contained glitter”  
Lovely, sarcasm and even a smile.  
“Straight people are weird”  
“I know, right?”  
Awkward silence was eminent.   
“So… Did you want to talk or something?”  
“No… Well, yeah. But you’re not bothered by… you know… people thinking we are sleeping together?”  
“Doesn’t bother me” And if I smile just the right way Stiles could make a mental jump from other people thinking it to maybe actually doing it.   
“Okay. Good. Well… I don’t know what…” Yeah and seeing Stiles scratch the back of his head highlighted the biceps in Derek’s field of vision.   
“So what would you like to talk about?”  
“I don’t know what to…”  
“What do you normally talk about on a date?”  
“I don’t date”  
“Oh” So one-night stands and booty calls? Derek could deal with that.

“Yeah, I’m pathetic like that”  
“What do you talk about with your friends?”  
“Professor Redmar’s sadistic midterms and his hot TA doesn’t seem proper given the context”  
“I am sure it is a riveting tale in the right environment”  
“You have no idea. Redmar retired last year and the TA graduated the year before. They left a lasting impression on everyone. Bordering on PTSD. But you know… not”  
“I bet.” Stiles looked suddenly even more uncomfortable.  
“Sorry. It’s just the mental connection is strong to that thing long time ago that we are so not going to talk about. That’s what shrinks are for…”  
“Right.” Of course, that’s what would come up. And he did not even look Derek in the eyes anymore. They were doing so well…  
“So…?” Derek was hoping Stiles had the confidence to change the subject.  
“I don’t know…”  
Well here we go. This conversation needs to be moved to a less traumatizing territory by Derek.  
“So, I’ll go first. You are really cute” Laying it on thick was a bold move. For the sake of conversational contrast nothing worked better.  
“Um...what am I supposed to say to that?” At least Stiles was now staring at Derek in the eye. Confused, but there you go.  
“Thank you works fine.”  
“Thank you?” The slow blink was hilarious on Stiles’ face. He tried to look around, maybe making sure nobody had overheard. Maybe to avoid the prolonged eye contact.  
“Yeah. The kind of cute you cuddle with, just so you know.”   
“You kidding? Or doing the pity thing?” Wait, was there a precedent for this for Stiles? Some well-meaning idiot doing a ‘favor’ or gaining brownie points for the Sunday church crowd?  
“Nope.” Putting his most sincere smile on was called for. Because Derek had his own agenda. A very selfish agenda.   
“What am I supposed to say to that? Thank you?”  
“Sure. I just think you are cute, and a cuddle date would be awesome”  
“So, I’m like a puppy or something?”  
“No.” Although there is something puppy-like in the way Stiles fidgets and smiles nervously. “Doesn’t have to be today, Stiles. Think about it.” Somewhat aggressive approach seemed to work for now. Derek had the advantage in the dating arena apparently and he was going to use it for all it was worth.

Stiles sipped his coffee and Derek kept smiling. So what, if it made him look like an idiot. He was comfortable enough in his skin to take that hit.   
“I’m thinking” Stiles still looked doubtful, but also maybe intrigued.  
“Good”  
“So like an actual date? Like people do? With movies and stuff?”  
“Or coffee. Like right now”  
“We are on a date? I thought this was practice! You should have told me! I could have…” And Stiles pointing at his shirt was hilarious. The shirt was fine.   
“Hey, you took me out very thoughtfully after work and paid for the coffee”  
“But- I didn’t- This was not on purpose!”  
“You internet stalked my closing time, Stiles”  
“As a courtesy!”  
“So why didn’t you just bring a takeout coffee? Same idea and not a date”  
“I don’t know. I guess I wanted to… talk? And… Oh god, this is a date”  
Smirking a red-faced Stiles was a bit mean.

“Hey, I said yes. You are doing fine. Now you could try to pave your way to a second date”  
“How?” That question seemed to slip out of Stiles without his knowledge and made him stammer and blush.  
“Up to you”  
“You can’t leave that to me! I almost fucked this up without even knowing I was on a date! That I organized myself!”  
“I’m pretty sure I’ll say yes to what ever you suggest”  
“You don’t know me! I could suggest a quilting museum tour and a long walk on the bad side of town. The side with homeless people and funny smell”  
“I would probably say yes. It’d be like a movie you won’t need to pay attention to and a haunted house. Date time staples.”  
“Jesus… I’m not that cute”  
“Yeah, you are”

Derek did get a phone number. And later that night a text:  
‘Tuesday at 6pm at the mall. Like proper teenagers. Don’t wear anything nice’


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally found the time to continue this indulgence.

The painting place was a surprise to say at least. Derek had a bowl in front of him and a small vat of blue paint.   
“So what am I supposed to do here?”  
“Paint, Derek. I thought you were familiar with the whole dating thing”  
“This is not a normal date. This is what a couple of ten-year-olds would do on a chaperoned date.”  
“Are saying you would like to have my dad here to supervise? I’m sure the mom over at the front can substitute.”  
“No. This is perfect. This is the last place your dad would probably stake to catch someone perving over his kid”  
And that silence was horrifying. Until Stiles chuckled and got back to his mug. He seemed to take the painting out of the equation and just pouring different colors over the thing. Derek flashed back to undergrad art classes. 

“So, do you like ceramics?” Stiles asked. Hopefully he wasn’t expecting anything professional out of his mouth.   
“I have no strong feelings about pots”  
Stiles looked confused and seemed to forget he had a squirt bottle of red paint steadily dripping over the rim of his mug.  
“I thought you went to art school or something”  
“Sure, but I also apprenticed for a carpenter and concentrated on design classes”  
“Cool”  
Conversation. The two-way street of awkward.  
“What’s your major anyway?”  
“I dabble, double majoring in computer science and stats. Well, they are kind of connected, so not that much of dabbling. More like expanding”  
“Impressive.”  
“Not really. It’s not that hard”  
Of course he would think that. 

“Shit” The blue paint dripped over his hands. There was nowhere to wipe them. Derek was wearing pants he liked. This is obviously why Stiles had suggested ‘nothing nice’.  
“Let me just wipe that off you” And Stiles proceeded to get the paint off his fingers. He felt like a five-year-old. Great. The mom in the corner was staring now.   
“Well I think this illustrates why ceramics is not my medium”  
“No! It looks good. All artistic and minimal. Like those paintings with a black dot and huge price tag”   
Stiles seemed genuine. Maybe they just had wildly different tastes in art. He ended up getting the thing glazed at Stiles’ insistence along with the color-vomit-rainbow mug.   
“Well…. While those are doin’ their thing, we are going to see a movie.”

Stiles seemed to be sure about this. And proceeded to get them into a daytime showing of some animated movie. With a bunch of kids with their bored parents in the audience. There seemed to be a theme here.   
“I know I was joking about the chaperone thing, but this seems a bit… are you playing a joke on me?”  
Stiles blushed and avoided looking at Derek. It was almost comical, if it wasn’t so heart-breaking.  
“I wouldn’t try anything, you know. Even if you took me to a PG-13 movie” Derek tried to use his jovial buddy voice. He even smiled a bit. Stiles sank into his seat and relaxed visibly with a heavy exhale.  
“I know… It’s just… safer? I didn’t want to lead you on or something.” Ah, ‘they only have one thing in their mind’ -thing. What a load of shit. Derek had many thoughts apart from imagining how Stiles’ lips felt. Like how on earth the guy was so well adjusted and how he seemed so much at home at the ceramics painting place.  
“I could have taken a subtler hint too. I see where you’re coming from. And I am really having a good time. Just you know, for future reference.”  
“Future….? Okay” And finally the smile was not just nervous. “Maybe we can watch the Avengers”

To be fair, ‘the secret life of pets’ was a nice movie. Not having a movie with intense attention-grabbing scenes left Derek more time to observe Stiles and try to display his least sexually suggestive self while sitting in a dark room. Stiles ended up leaning against his side by the halfway mark.  
‘Hey, can I hold your hand?’ was the only thing he said that made it seem like more than two buddies at the movies.   
‘Yeah’ and a lopsided smile from Stiles led his hand being held hostage for twenty-five minutes. At least it was safe and something they had already done. This was the slowest progress ever. Maybe there was a standard amount of dysfunction and maladjustment from any type of abuse. Stiles obviously had all his hang-ups firmly planted on romantic relationships, while Derek had a more even spread of issues from all social interactions to the smell of strawberry-flavored condoms.

He took the bowl home and ended up putting his keys in it. And in a way, it reminded him of Stiles even if the guy had never touched the bowl. And apparently it also made Derek the most sentimental grandmother in his building. Sending a picture of the bowl in use to Stiles seemed like a great idea. To think of it, it was the first phone-related communication he initiated towards Stiles. 

‘Told you so. Looks great’ was the immediate answer.  
‘Thanks. I think. What happened to the mug?’  
‘Adds to the collection.’  
‘?’   
‘I’ll show you some time’ Which obviously meant there was going to be another date and a visit to where ever Stiles keeps his collection of dodgy ceramics.  
‘Sounds good.’ 

‘Did I fuck this up?’ was a surprise.   
‘What?’ Derek thought the texting was going remarkably well.  
‘The date’  
‘No.’ Jesus, it had been a nice date. ‘A bit pre-teen, but the theme was carried through masterfully. 10/10 would recommend’  
‘Full disclosure: I asked dad for tips’  
Well that explains a lot…   
‘Your friends couldn’t have helped?’  
‘No.’  
Right. They would probably have suggested skinny dipping after clubbing, followed by fucking in the back of Derek’s car.

‘Gotcha’  
‘No-one says gotcha :D’  
‘Everyone in the olden days said it’  
‘You saying you’re old?’  
‘Yes. And congratulations of the proper use of “you’re”’  
‘Like 40?’ God, did he look forty? Should he update his wardrobe?  
‘Not that old’  
’35?’ What is this? A rocket launch?  
‘29’  
‘Not that old then’  
‘If you start guessing at 40, I must seem ancient. Isn’t your dad 40?’  
’45. Why did you have to make this weird? :P’ And that is an invitation to make a joke.  
‘Your dad looks great’  
‘He’s straight and too old for you’ Derek had to laugh at that. The response was fast too.  
‘Good thing you at least swing for my team’  
‘I am warming the bench at most’  
‘I’ll play an arousing game of catch with you’ was maybe a tad too forward.  
‘I refuse to follow this metaphor into pitching territory. Nice try though ;)’


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was inspired to do a quick update on this.

Stiles’ t-shirt was too loose and long to get any ideas even if the pants seemed tight enough to be suggestive. Like he was dressed by two separate stylists: a nun and a stripper.   
“Does your dad know you are on a date?” It was a nice date. A walk in a park after a movie.   
“Yeah, why?”   
Stiles glanced at him confused. At least he probably wasn’t aware of what Derek had realized few minutes into their supposedly romantic walk.  
“This park is right across from the police station. And I think he sits in that squad car right there.”  
“Shit.” Stiles turned a shade of pink that did not go well with the loose t-shirt.   
“I think he’s having a doughnut.” It was the classic pink frosted kind. Derek kind of wanted one too.  
“Oh no he is not for long” And hello, that was a healthy dose of irritation. And the determination brought Stiles out of the awkwardness that had been coming over him. It was hot. Derek should have worn less tight pants.  
He played for time and walked after the jogging Stiles. Bent over to reach the squad car window almost revealed the delicious pants from under the t-shirt. A tease. Maybe the nun had been less pious than Derek first thought. Or maybe the stripper-stylist had done the whole thing. 

“…-re making this more awkward!”  
The sheriff looked smug.  
“This is a public park; I could just be doing my job”  
“Not with this! I am confiscating it. There. Now you are on the job.”  
That got the sheriff’s attention and erased the smug grin. Stiles passed the doughnut to Derek without looking. It would do him no favors to start eating the pink-frosted ring. Better get this over with fast. Maybe they could share the doughnut after.  
“Mr. Stilinski.” No harm in kissing ass.  
“Hale. How are you?”  
“Apparently awkward” And honesty never hurt. As long as it did not involve any details. Incriminating thoughts. Or politics.  
“I didn’t mean…” Oh, the sheriff seemed embarrassed. Well that was adorable. In a general ‘puppies-are-cute’ -way.   
“I don’t mind. Hi. How was the doughnut?”   
“Dad, we are heading to Derek’s since there is no privacy anywhere in this town”  
“It’s a public park!”  
“Yeah, and you are stalking us. You are the most embarrassing thing that has happened to me in years”  
“Ditto, son. Fine. I’ll get back to the office. Play nice. Keep your pants on!” Closed car window prevented Stiles from retaliating verbally.

“Sorry about him” The blush was not the most flattering on Stiles.  
“It’s okay. This is what you get for asking your dad for dating tips, though”  
“Point taken”   
Stiles threw the doughnut away into a trash can the second they reached one. At least he was smiling again. The walk was bland in contrast to the whole confrontation with the sheriff. It was getting cooler as the sun started to set.  
“Did you want to see my place?”  
“Uh… sure.” Right. That could be a prelude to no-pants time the sheriff forbade.  
“Just showing you the place. And Cora needs to probably go out. So, we will not even stay in there”  
“Oh. Okay. A walk then” Stiles seemed to forcefully relax himself.   
“Yeah”

Derek’s apartment was as clean as it would get with Cora living in the same address. Third floor was high enough to have a decent sized balcony and an excuse to never use the elevator. It was a smell thing. Someone in the building used triggering type of perfume.   
As soon as they stepped in, Derek took a hold of Cora’s collar to keep her from jumping Stiles who seemed a bit taken back if not straight out scared.  
“Come on girl, sit down and calm down. This is Stiles”   
Cora sat between Derek’s bent legs so he could be right there if she decided to try and approach Stiles tongue first.  
“She is bigger than I thought…”  
“Well she has grown since… you know. And also gotten a bit chubby.”  
Cora seemed to know they were talking about her. Which made her want more attention.   
“She is adorable” Stiles said as the dog looked at him and tilted its head to the side.   
“No, she is manipulative. You can pet her if you want to. She hasn’t bitten anyone since… well you know”   
“Oh right. Did she get anything for what she did… back then?”  
“We still have dick-shaped dog biscuits”  
Stiles laughed and kneeled on the floor to get closer to Cora. He allowed her to smell his hand before touching her side.   
“How much exercise does she need? She is so big” Obviously more comfortable with the dog, Stiles had started scratching its head. And Cora took this as an opportunity to get belly rubs. Derek got up to get the leash and the ball.   
“I go run with her in the morning. If she’s at the shop, we take a quick walk during lunch. And the evening walk that we are going to do usually includes some fun with the ball”

Stiles got up from the floor to explore the apartment with the dog hair decorated sofa in clear view from the foyer. “So, this is your place?”  
“Yeah. I bought it a couple of years ago. Take a look, if you want. I have to take a leak really quick”  
He could hear Stiles opening the bedroom door and Cora’s nails clicking on the floor as she followed him. His guest sounded to be heading to the kitchen as Derek zipped his pants.  
“Let me guess, you want to give her a treat”  
“How did you…?” Stiles blushed again. What was it with him today?  
“She did the head tilt and probably the puppy eyes combined with attempted handshake. Manipulative, I tell you” And Derek should know. He fell for it all the time.   
“Can I though?”   
“Yeah… Let me get the biscuits” If Derek begged real nicely, would Stiles give him more than hand holding?

The walk was longer than usual, which delighted Cora. And Derek gathered Stiles’ hand in his before they got back to his place.   
“This outdoor hand holding is okay. Like moving from city biking to mountain biking”  
“You have a way with words. Not sure if it’s a good way”  
“Ha ha, Derek.” They stopped at the entrance to his building and Stiles seemed to get nervous again. Did he think Derek would ask him to come up? That was not going to happen any time soon when the guy still got this nervous about the chance of it happening. Derek wanted to ask, but even with his limited social intelligence he knew it was the absolute wrong move.  
“So… thanks for the date. And introducing me to Cora.”  
“My pleasure”  
“Oh hey, is this like introducing me to your kid or something?”  
“What? No. I mean, I don’t have kids. And she is a dog”  
“Good to know.” Yeah, smile like that for much longer and I will say something really stupid. 

“So, it has been brought to my attention that dates should have some sort of escalation of intimacy or something…” Oh god. This sounds like a bad romance novel. With triggering plot line and public service announcement attached to it.   
“Stiles, no. That’s just a stupid social convention pushed in movies”  
“Yeah, but I don’t mind… like a hug or something?” Stiles looked a bit uncomfortable. Could be nerves though.  
“Are you asking?” Derek could not have this be something that left a bad taste about the date for Stiles. It could not be something Stiles felt he had to do.  
“I guess I am. You want to hug me? Like now?” There were way too many questions there.  
“You want me to?”   
“I… yeah.” Okay.   
“Okay. You might have to do most of the hugging though.” Pointedly rising his hands with the leash and the slobbery tennis ball prompted Stiles to move in. He put his hands to Derek’s sides and leaned to him carefully, face over Derek’s right shoulder. It was probably awkward looking. And Derek did not help much by closing his arms as much as he could around Stiles’ shoulders while still holding his things.   
“You’re warm” Stiles breathed to Derek’s neck.  
“It’s summer, Stiles. Everyone’s warm”  
“You’re tall”  
“Not really”  
“You’re very firm” What?  
“I… thanks?”  
“Did I make it weird?” Stiles asked as he released Derek.   
“No, it was a hug. It felt like a hug. Nothing weird about it.”  
“Okay. Well thanks for the walk”  
Stiles did smile at him. And petted Cora a bit.  
“My pleasure.”  
“If I don’t get home soon, dad’s going to think I actually stayed at your place”  
“Well you better go and correct any misconceptions. I hear he has guns and my address.”  
This time Derek was awarded by a snigger from Stiles.   
“Yeah, he does… Thanks Derek.”  
“Good night Stiles.”  
He stayed outside long enough to catch Stiles looking back at him as he made his way to the car.   
Yeah, great, Derek was in the middle of re-positioning his dick in the unfortunate tighter-than-desired pants. Derek was not getting a sainthood out of this.


	7. Chapter 7

The Stilinski house porch light was on. It made it impossible to stall and hide more than a minute before Stiles yanked the door open.   
“I am so sorry for this, man”  
“It’s fine” And it was fine. Not what Derek wanted to do on a Saturday night. But not exactly a hardship either.   
“No. I am an adult, and this should not be a thing adults do” Spoken like a real teen. Stiles was even wearing some combination of funky shirts and ancient flannel that made him look fifteen.  
“Stiles, this is exactly what everyone does at some point. I thought the meet the parents -thing would be something you might want to experience”   
“Yeah, but after like, real dating stuff!”  
“You took me out for coffee and movies and stuff. Dating stuff right there”  
“You know what I mean… If hugging was a threshold for parental dinner, we should have had Scott over for a shovel-talk years ago. Just because Dad saw the handholding, this is what I have to go through”  
Shovel-talk? Seriously? This was obviously a trap.

“Dad is just overdoing it. Keep that in mind.”  
When Derek saw the sheriff with a handgun half-assembled, he finally got why Stiles was reacting strongly.   
“Mr Hale, nice to see you again”  
Was it nice? Was it sarcasm? Stiles was 21, right? He was sure. He had checked the ID at the bar before generously adding extra rum to the long island.   
“Same to you sheriff”  
“Nah, call me Noah. Unless you are planning to do something Stiles doesn’t want, then by all means remind yourself of my position and the firepower it allows me to keep in the house”  
“Duly noted, sir…. Noah”  
“Dad. You got to do your bit. Stop fondling your guns!”  
Stiles was a lovely shade of pink. The lasagna was surprisingly spicy. And Stiles was obviously bothered by his dad’s humorous jabs. And Noah seemed to have fun with it too for solid ten minutes.   
“…and Stiles here should be treated with respect”  
“Dad! Jesus Christ! No-one’s treating anyone in any way! We haven’t even kissed! I am the most virginal twenty-one-year-old in all of Beacon Hills apart from the brutal gang rape!”  
The silence was followed by Stiles excusing himself fast.

“I… I’m sorry. This is the first relationship related thing he has done, and he seemed so okay with all of it. I guess I thought it was fine… finally something normal parents get to do. Jesus.”  
Oh no… Derek could not take it if he had to comfort the sheriff at the dining table.   
He must have looked desperately awkward.  
“Derek, you should probably go-“  
Well crap this would be the worst end for a night.  
“-up and see if Stiles is fine. I am the last person he wants to see for a while”  
“What?”  
“Yeah. His room is the second door on your left”  
And just like that Derek was left in the dining room as the sheriff went to dig out a reasonably full bottle of whiskey from the pantry.

Well that was unplanned. Standing behind Stiles’ door gathering his thoughts an trying to listen for sobbing was horrible. He didn’t hear anything. It didn’t mean Stiles wasn’t crying or something. He might want privacy. But the sheriff, Stiles’ dad, had told him to check on his kid.   
Derek opened the door after a set of soft knocks.   
“Hey, Stiles. Are you okay?”  
The bedspread was blue and Stiles sat on it hugging a gigantic stuffed German shepherd.   
“I shouldn’t have said anything” was the first thing out of Stiles’ mouth, mostly muffled by the stuffed animal’s neck.   
“Your dad knows he went too far.”  
Obviously Stiles was expecting his dad.  
“I thought you would have left to avoid the family drama”  
“Your dad asked me to come up and make sure you’re okay. He seems really sorry and sad”  
“He’s been sad for a long time. Like he has been waiting for me to get over myself and just start dating. Or reveal that I am normal after all and tell that one of my friends is actually a boyfriend” Stiles sets the dog aside and rubs his face.   
“I guess I’ll check on him. He took the whiskey out, didn’t he?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Okay. Give me a minute”  
As Stiles disappeared downstairs, Derek wandered around the room. It was obviously the one that was kept for Stiles when he visited home. There were high school notebooks in the shelves and a collection of fantasy themed posters on the walls. The dog was interesting. It was pretty much life-sized and not cartoon-y. The fur was a bit matted on the side, but the coloring was spot on. It must have been a favorite. No wonder Stiles adored Cora. 

“Sorry about that, he just really got excited and forgot himself.” Stiles seemed calmer as he got back and sat next to Derek on the bed.   
“It’s fine”  
“Well, my reaction was not fine. I don’t usually swing the r-word around”  
“Laura yelled at our dad after every time he waited for her to come home from a date and didn’t talk to him for a week once. You are being relatively sensible”  
“Thanks”

Derek kept fondling the ear of the stuffed dog.  
“So you found him? What do you think? Shredder is my buddy”  
“You named a stuffed animal Shredder?”  
“Yes. I stand by my choice. He sits on the front seat and gets the left side of the bed without contest”  
“So this is my competition then?” Trying to lighten the mood seemed to be in order.  
“Yeah. Shredder is a real push-over though. Something to do with his early childhood”  
“I will use the information responsibly”  
Leaning towards Stiles was a consciously flirtatious move.   
And Stiles noticed it. He was staring at Derek’s mouth.  
“Did you want to do something?”, Stiles asked and licked his lips. They were nice lips especially when observed this close.  
“Like what?”  
“You know. Whatever people are supposed to do when enclosed in a room together after a disastrous date” Stiles’ smile was a bit fake. Yeah, it had not gone as smoothly as Derek would have liked.  
“Stiles, I’m not here to do anything. Especially with your father and his guns downstairs”  
“Just saying we could” Great. Now Stiles was leaving things open ended and Derek’s imagination was bound to bring that up later. Many times. With added imaginary commentary and filthy director’s cut.  
“Well, Shredder seems to have a differing opinion” The animal was firmly lodged between them.   
“He is protective”  
“As he should be”  
“Are you saying you’re something I need to be protected from?”  
“Not exactly. Maybe Shredder protects you from what you think we should be doing. It’s not like we have to follow some weird calendar” Now he was thinking of calendars. Stiles for every month. Wearing decreasing number of clothes. Can’t wait for Christmas…

“So you would be okay with sex before kissing? Or blowjob before kissing? Or kissing before holding hands?” Jesus Christ! With the calendar imagery as a background, the ‘sex-blowjob’ soundtrack was horribly distracting. But Derek was not an idiot.  
“You keep mentioning kissing.”  
“As a comparison…”  
“Really?”  
“Maybe?”  
“Do you want to kiss?”  
“Yeah… kind of”  
“You can tell me”  
“I want to kiss. Without the tongue part. I might freak the fuck out even without it”  
“Okay”  
“Okay? That’s all?”  
“Yeah.”

“Well? I can’t believe I need to tell you to come at me bro”  
“You want me to do it?”  
“Yeah. I don’t know what I’m doing. Injuries could ensue”  
“So… you haven’t?”  
“What? No… I mean kind of. Maybe. Once. It was dark. And I wasn’t really awake. And she was doing it on a dare from her boyfriend”  
“Jesus.”  
“Yeah, she was left with a shiner that could not be explained to the RA easily and I got a transfer to a single room”  
“Stiles, that is messed up. She should have never… Okay. You want to try it?”  
“Yeah”  
“Close your eyes”  
“Because it makes it romantic?”  
“Because staring at me like that is creepy”

The kiss was short and appropriate for when Stiles’ father made his presence known. God knows how much of the build-up conversation he had heard. Based on the barely disguised smirk, at least the humiliating parts.


End file.
